Cooler



W. O THOMPSON.

COOLER.

APPLICATION FILED AUG-4, 1920.

ill" 2 4' 1,.

Patented Dec. 6, 1921.

UNl'iED', STATES PATENT ()FFECE.

WILLIAM O. THOMPSDN, OF SPOKANE, WASHINGTQN, ASSIGNOR-OF ONE-HALF T9 HAROLD B. THOMPSON, OF SPOKANE, WASHINGTON.

COOLER.

Application filed. August 4, 1920.

To all 70/ 10772- it may concern:

Be it known that I, lViLLIAM O. THOMP- son, a citizen of the United States, residing at Spokane, in Spokane county and State of ll asliington, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Coolers, of which the following is a specification.

My present invention relates to improvements in evaporative coolers employing external, absorbent curtains, adapted by capillary attraction and the circulation of air to carry oil the heat from an inclosing vessel or container, for refrigerating the contents of the vessel or cooler. The invention is adapted for domestic use, and is equally well fitted for portable use, as for instance attachment to an automobile, for picnic or camping parties.

The primary object of the invention is the provision of a device of this character that is comparatively inexpensive in first cost, simple in construction, durable, and requiring only a minimum amount of water, without waste, for cooling the device.

vVith the above ends in view the invention consists in certain novel combinations and arrangements of parts, involving especially the troughs or reservoirs, and feed tanks, the arrangementof the curtains, and other features ofconstruction as will be hereinafter pointed out and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings I have illustrated one complete example of the physical embodiment of my invention, constructed and arranged according to the best mode I have thus far devised for the prac tical application of the principles of my invention.

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a cooler embodying my invention, showing one of the lids o closure doors open.

Fig. 2 is a vertical, transverse sectional view of the cooler.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged, detail, transverse sectional view through one of the troughs or reservoirs.

Fig. t is a similar detail view through the trough or reservoir for the hinged lids or doors of the cooler.

In the preferred form of my invention as illustrated in the drawings I utilize a rectangular box or cooler, preferably of metal with sealed joints, and fashioned with side walls 1, 1, end walls 2, 2, and rigid bottom 3. A top closure is provided for the cooler Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 6, 1921.

Serial No. 401,243.

or box, comprising a pair of longitudinally extending lids 1 and 5, meeting at the longitudinal center of the cooler and declining toward the sides thereof, where they are oppositely hinged at 6, 6, to the t p of the side walls of the cooler, and adapted to open outwardly from one another.

For convenience in storing provisions within the cooler, I preferably utilize a horizontally disposed partition or shelf 7, located approximately at the vertical center of the cooler, and resting on a pair of angle bar brackets 8, 8 attached at the sides of the interior of the cooler or box. This shelf or tray is removable and may be dispensed with, if desired to accommodate large size goods or provisions, but when in use the tray divides the cooler into upper and lower compartments 9 and 10 respectively, to accommodate the provisions to be stored for refrigeration. 7

The interior of the cooler or box is refrigerated by evaporative, external cooling devices, utilized in connection with a series of three troughs 11, 12, and 13. The number of troughs may be varied, but with the size cooler indicated in the drawings, the three troughs utilized are sufficient to cool, by evaporation, the entire area of the surface of the cooler, with the exception of the bottom. Thus. the lower trough is adapted to cool the lower compartment; the intermediate trough furnishes the water for evaporation for the upper compartment, and the upper trough 13 contains water for evaporation over the two lids of the box closure.

A. series of detachable side curtains let and a similar series of end curtains 15 are arranged in tiers about the cooler, and over the lids a pair of top curtains or aprons 14 are used. These curtains are made of suitable absorbent material or cloths, such as burlap, woven netting, cheese cloth or similar material, are rectangular in shape to conform to the surface area about which they are to hang, and are detachable, being provided with buttons, snap hooks or other fasteners indicated at 16. The aprons 14 are detachably fastened at the free edges of the lids 4 and 5, and lie on the inclined outer faces of the lids.

The lower edges of the curtains and aprons depend through slots into the troughs or water containers, the slots being indicated at 17 in the troughs 11 and 12 and at 17' in the trough 18. The slots are of sufficient width to accommodate the cur tains, but are restricted for this purpose and to prevent waste of water from the troughs by evaporation. To eiiectively close the troughs against waste by evaporation, or loss by splashing when the cooler is used on an automobile, I utilize overhanging flangeslS and 18 which extend longitudinally of the, troughs at their upper sides and provide a neat fit fo the curtains and aprons depending in the troughs.

Water is fed to the troughs from an elevated tank 19 which is preferably formed with a separate compartment for each tank, and supported above the cooler on brackets 19 attached thereto. Gravity feed pipes 20, 21, 22, are extended from the severalcompartments of the tank to the respective troughs, and at 22' in dotted lines Fig. 2 it will be seen that the open lower ends of the feed pipes are located near the tops of the troughs. This location of the open ends of the pipes provides a regulated and equalized feed of water from the tank to the troughs, governedby air pressure in the tank compartments that may be filled through the sealed filling nozzles 23. Thus, should the water level in the trough fall below the lower open end of the feed pipe a flow of water will be established until the water level again submerges the pipe end, and in this manner the required quantity of water is maintained in the trough as long as the supply lasts in the tank. Should the supply become exhausted, thetank compartments will again be filled through the nozzles 28.

Under the influence of capillary attraction, the water in the trough rises in well known manner through the absorbent material or curtains, and its evaporation from the curtains and aprons-carries off the heat from the interior of the cooler. The evapo' ration and consequent cooling are enhanced by the movement of air currents, and therefore, for domestic use, it is V referable that the cooler be located in a p ace where the moving currents ofair will pass over the curtains, or a power driven fan may be utilized to create the air currents. When the cooler is carried on an automobile, the

air currents induced by the motion of the car will be sufiicient for rapid cooling by evaporation. .The portable cooler may be constructed of various sizes for automobile use, and for domestic use may be substituted for the usual ice chest or refrigerator.

The detachable curtains and aprons may be'removed for laundrying when required, or be stored away for preservation when not in use. The feed of water from the tank to the troughs is a. automatically governed by admission of air to the supply tank when the water in the trough has reached a level to unseal the open end of the feed pipe, thus elimin'atingthe necessity for attention, except when the tank is. to be refilled or 'replenished. The rapid evaporation of the water on the. curtains transfers the heat from the interior of the, cooler, thus reducing a the temperature of the cooler sufiiciently to tion, what. I claim "as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. The combination with a closed cooling box having a plurality of exterior troughs extended thereabout and formed w th upper slots, of a series ofcurtains attached above the troughs with their lower edges passing through said slots, guard flanges along said slots co-acting with said curtains, a tank having a separate supply compartmenti'or each trough, and a feed pipe from said compartments to a trough.

1 2. The combination with a cooling box having upper inclined, oppositely disposed hinged lids, a slotted trough surrounding the box below the hinged lids, a slotted trough at the bottom ofthe box, and a similar inter-' mediate trough, of detachable aprons fastened to the upper edges of the lids with their lower edges in the upper troughs, two tiers of detachable curtains fastened to the box with their lower edges in the lower and intermediate troughs respectively guard flanges along the slotted troughs, and means for automatically feeding water to all of said troughs.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature.

WILLIAMO. THOMPSON. 

